Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice Thomas Saylor could be fined up to $6000 for trying to sneak a small pocketknife on to the airplane. He was initially told during check-in that he could not carry the pocketknife on the plane and that it must be put with stowed luggage. He apparently then tried to hide the knife inside a shoe and was caught with it at the Harrisburg Intl. Airport. Bush Sr. and Clinton are in Thailand assessing tsunami damage and both of them reportedly almost came to tears because of what they observed and their interactions with some of the children who lost their parents, especially around Ban Nam Khem, where an estimated 1500-2000 people, more than a third of the village, lost their lives. I thought Thailand had refused any foreign aid. They also observed the ruins in Khao Lak.

An Egyptian Doctor removed the second head of a 10 month old girl suffering from Craniopagus Parasiticus one of the rarest birth defects, the parasitic head had been capable of smiling and blinking, but not independent life. Correction about the Kenyan boys who had their penises cut off—it was not a Kenyan doctor who did the surgery it was a doctor from Spain. Sports: Illinois continues their unbeaten streak with a win over Iowa. Former baseball player Canseco owes $32, 000 in back taxes to the state of Massachusetts but his attorney says that it is a clerical error and that these taxes were deducted from his payroll when he was playing baseball, but that the baseball clubs have not sent the affidavits to the state. Iowa State upsets #2 Kansas in men’s basketball. Iowa State started the season 0-5.

The Lakers are 26-24 this year and Shaquille O’Neal says their record speaks for itself. Teacher at Fenway High School in Boston—an immigrant from the Ivory Coast is being deported in a few weeks but parents, students, teachers, and administrators are fighting to keep him here. He missed an immigration hearing scheduled for June 7, 2001, saying he thought it was on July 7, 2001 and because he missed the scheduled hearing he was ordered deported, in absentia. He spent a few months in prison later.. and then was ordered deported. He says that if he goes back to Ivory Coast he could end up in prison or killed. He has been given three extra weeks to find a country to go to that is safe for him. His name is Attouman, Obain.

Spotlight Story (AP NEWS)

“Do Red-Light Traffic Cameras Help?”

Are Cameras at Traffic Signals the Answer to Dangerous Intersections, or Part of the Problem?”

As red-light traffic cameras spring up at intersections across the country, critics are raising questions about whether the devices actually deter red-light running, or are just a way for local authorities to make a quick buck. The cameras snap pictures of vehicles that run red lights. The violator then receives a summons in the mail for the infraction. There’s no exact count of how many cameras are being used, but one recent study shows that they are currently used in more than a dozen states and more than 70 cities across the country. Proponents say the cameras make roads safer by deterring red-light runners from breaking the rules, but detractors say dangerous intersections are the result of engineering deficiencies and the cameras are just a way to increase revenue on the backs of unsuspecting drivers. Do we Need them? “Red Light cameras just reward cities for bad engineering” said Eric Skrum, spokesman for the National Motorists Association, a motorist advocacy group that has been arguing against the use of red-light cameras nationwide. The group contends that the best remedies for dangerous intersections are engineering improvements like longer yellow lights and shielding signals to prevent glare and make the lights more visible as the sun sets.

According to the group’s web site, the organization believes that “with properly posted speed limits and properly installed traffic-control devices there is no need for camera-based law traffic law enforcement devices.” The NMA points to studies of red-light cameras that show that while there is generally a decrease in side-impact collisions, there is an increase in rear-end collisions as drivers slam on their brakes to avoid running a red light. Robert Sinclair, a spokesman for the Automobile Association of America’s New York offices, says the risks are too great not to have the cameras in certain areas. “The nature of the collision that takes place when someone runs a red light is a very dangerous one, the so-called ‘t-bone’ he said is “the weakest part of the vehicle is its side. So someone runs a red light and smashes into the side of a vehicle and lots of bad things can happen.’ But Skrum argues that the cameras are not the only way to deal with dangerous intersections.” Most drivers don’t want to run red lights” said Skrum, ‘but due to engineering flaws at some intersections they sometimes have no choice. Speed up or slow down? A number of studies have shown that by simply increasing the length of “amber” or “yellow” lights dangerous intersections can be made safe.

“By increasing the length of yellow lights,” Skrum explained, “you can cut down on the amount of violations and accidents at an intersection. “It’s the moment for a driver when he must make a choice. As a light turns yellow he has to decide between speeding up to get through an intersection and trying to stop in time to keep from running a red light. Sinclair said that time of dilemma is shortened if a yellow light is too quick. “It might actually encourage people to try and run the yellow” he said. “It’s that go, no-go decision time we worry about.” Studies show that lengthening the amber light gives drivers more time to make that choice and more time to brake. But in some cash-strapped communities, shorter yellow lights at intersections equipped with red-light cameras means more tickets—and that means more money. The AAA supports the use of cameras, but Sinclair agrees that their use needs to be monitored so drivers aren’t taken advantage of. ‘We’ve seen ambers as as short as a second in those areas where they might be wanting to, lets say, enhance revenue,”he said. There needs to be a national standard for the length of amber lights.” A study released in January by the Texas Transportation Institute concluded that extending a yellow light by 1.5 seconds would decrease red-light-running by at least 50 percent. The institute also found that cameras do have a positive impact: that intersections equipped with the devices saw a 40- percent decrease in violations on average. They also found that the cameras had a kind of ‘halo’ effect where nearby intersections also saw a drop in violations. Who is profiting? The NMA says that towns and cities that want to use red-light cameras disregard studies that question the cameras effectiveness, instead turning to studies quoted by groups like the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety which is supported by many of the nation’s insurance providers. The insurance institute’s Web site shows that it believes in the cameras and sees them as a powerful weapon against red-light runners. Skrum argues that insurance companies have a vested interest in the success of the cameras. “The insurance industry is going to profit from the cameras” he said “because more cameras means more tickets being issued and then they can raise the driver’s insurance rates. “

In addition , the companies that manufacture , install, and maintain the cameras generally make their profit from a portion of the ticket revenue the devices generate. Because of this, Skrum says, anything that might cause a decrease in tickets generated by the cameras would mean a decrease in profits for the camera manufacturers, the insurance companies and local municipalities. “In many instances engineering is being ignored because it’s easier to put up a camera,” Skrum said. “It’s more lucrative to put up a camera.” Motorists groups offers $10,000 challenge a “prove us wrong” type move—NMA is offering a cash prize for proof that dangerous intersections can’t be improved through engineering.

IN certain parts of the country, NMA is offering to bring in its own engineer to study any intersection equipped with a camera and to make recommendations on how the intersection could be made safer through improved engineering. The group says that if its recommendations are implemented in place of the camera the intersection will see at least 50 percent decline in red-light violations. If not, a $10,000 donation will be made toward a road safety or road improvement program of that community’s choosing. “We’re putting out money where our mouth is,” Skrum explained, ‘We’re saying if you address the problem with an engineering solution, you won’t need a camera.” So far no one has taken the challenge.

February 20, 2005

Teen Film Star Sandra Dee, age 62, died. She starred in “The Gidget” and other popular films such as “Tammy and the Doctor.” The Dollar couple was arrested in Salt Lake City and brought back to Florida for trial on child abuse. They had adopted several children and were seemingly okay, the social workers thought everything was okay but then suddenly it was discovered that they had beaten and starved their children and even pulled out their toe nails. Los Angeles has already gotten 28.55 inches of precipitation since July 1, the 7th wettest year on record, the record being 38.18 inches from July 1883 to the following June. If L.A. gets 10 more inches of rain by the end of June it will beat the record. Thai Sex czar Chuvit Kamolvisit has been elected to parliament, and that he has put massage parlors behind him, now in real estate and living an honest life, he says. Send tsunami video to Jean Throckmorton on Country Club Dr. in Burbank. Hunter Thompson, eccentric writer commit suicide in Aspen ColoradoFebruary 21, 2005

Levels of mercury found to be extremely high in Salt Lake (Salt Lake City UT). 6.4 earthquake hits Iran, killing maybe up to 400 or more. The quake was centered in the city of Zarand , in the province of Kerman. Winn Dixie has filed for bankruptcy protection. Los Angeles mayor election coming up soon— recent events may have lessened his popularity, the shooting of Devin Brown and the beating on the head of the black man (no charges filed against the officer).

February 22, 2005

Man accused of plotting to kill George Bush Jr. in 2002 and 2003 was indicted by a grand jury today in Virginia . He’s from Falls Church. His name is Ahmed Omar Abu Ali . Danger of so-called “bird flue”—they say it could become a pandemic. Lady in vegetative state for several years, debate continues whether to take her off the tube and let her die, or keep her alive but maybe brain dead (15 years on feeding tube).

Husband wants her taken off. Family wants to sustain her and contends she is alert even though she doesn’t show it. They want husband to divorce her so that they can become the guardians. Stephen Dale Barbee was charged with capitol murder on Tuesday after confessing to the slaying of his wife, Alise Underwood and son Jayden (it turns out that Alise or Lisa Underwood was not his wife—she was his mistress—he was married to somebody else who did not know about this relationship.

Lisa wanted Barbee’s wife to know….they argued about it and he killed her—while doing so, son Jayden walked in and so he killed him too). His wife owned a bagel shop (in Texas?). More rain—1 a.m Feb. 23. European Space Probe has unveiled a sea of ice on the equator of Mars, and that it lies just below the surface. Total of 33.09 inches of rain has fallen in southern California since July 1, 2004. The record amount is 38.18 inches set in 1883.

February 24, 2005

Surveys suggest Schwarzenager’s popularity is declining. In Pennsylvania a police trooper killed himself after police searched his home for child pornography paraphernalia, Dairy Cows affected by rainy season—Chino area—losing cows mud piles up so fast, cows refuse to lie down in muck and die of exhaustion, and they cannot let the water run off because laws re. Manure water,. The dairy farmers say they’ve lost at least 38 million in milk production because of dead and sick cows.

One farmer says he’s lost at least $2000 per day. Normally the region receives about 14 inches of rain in the winter, so far this year it has already gotten 30 inches since October. He says “Cows give less milk when they have to expend so much energy slogging through muddy water. Gunman shot his wife and another man with a rifle before being killed by police Hernandez Arroyo also wounded four people in the rampage in Tyler Texas, including two police officers and his own son.

The Pope is back in the hospital. A City employee in Los Angeles opened fire with a _ killing two fellow employees at a city yard. The Michael Jackson case is ready to begin on Monday with opening statements. Lute Olsen got his 304th Pac 10 win in men’s college basketball with the Arizona Wildcats, tying John Wooden’s Pac 10 record.

Former Steeler Lynn Swann is considering a run for governor for 2006. He was with the Steelers who won four Superbowls, from ’74 to ’82. He’s a Republican. Criticism of George Bush in Russia for not taking his gloves off to shake hands with Putin /. Discovery of a skull of an animal that looks like a cross between a bear and a pit bull in California’s San Joaquin Valley. United Nations predicts there will be 9.1 billion people on planet earth by the year 2050. A drunk prosecutor Monroe County Asst. Prosecutor Edward Tasker, age 28, … streaked across a motel parking lot naked and jumped into the car of a person he thought was a friend, but turned out to be a woman waiting for her boyfriend. ..Key West Police arrested Tasker

February 25, 2005

Paralegal who worked for the attorney representing the the mother of the Michael Jackson accuser…says the mother lied and told her son to lie and she (the paralegal) will testify about it. The court has allowed the husband of the woman in a vegetative state to take the feeding tube out of her mouth so that she can die, but the parents of the woman have been given three weeeks to appeal.

Wife of Hunter Thompson said he had mentioned suicide a few times in the past few months. Operation Blue Book was supposed to investigate UFO”s in 1950-60 but they say it never became a truly scientific inquiry—but they mention the fact that some trained Air Force employees had even reported some unexplicable sightings. Norwegian man caught a 320 poound Halibut—almost too big for his boat—he had to tow it in. Giant Panda skeleton found in tomb in China-Wide.

Receiver Jerry Rice has been released from the Seattle Seahawks—the Mississippi Valley State University grad played most of his career with the 49ers, and a few years with Oakland and will definitely be in the Hall of Fame having broken and holding many of the reception records. South Carolina Supreme Court has delayed its enforcement of Charm school for law school graduation, or post-law school requirements.

Paris Hilton’s cell phone account got hacked ..a list of celebrities, pictures of herself topless, and others stuff were plastered all over the internet. An artist plans to tow an iceberg to the city where they built the Titanic as a tribute to the titanic. Hunter Thompson wants his ashes shot out of a cannon as a final tribute to himself. Doctors in Thailand are trying to restore the eyesight of a monk who mistakenly used superglue on his eyes, thinking it was eye drops. Both eyes are apparently okay, but they have not yet separated the eyelids.

Authorities kill a tiger in Moorpark, near Simi Valley (Reagan Presidential Library) , apparently somebody’s private pet got loose. Woman in Alaska jealous about impending breakup with boyfriend or husband cut off the man’s penis and flushed it down the toilet. They recovered the penis and re-attached it surgically. Sammy Sosa has been traded from the Cubs to the Batlimore Orioles. Downtown Los Angeles has had 27.37 inches of rain. Since December 1. beating the 24 inches recorded in 1889-90.

They’ve found a person of interest in the BTK case. Family of person having heart problems in the emergency room at the Hospital in Santa Barbara might sue Michael Jackson and the hospital because when he came in they put him (Jackson) in the larger room where the heart patient was and moved the heart patient to another room where he subsequently had two more heart attacks and died. Wife of Hunter Thompson says he talked about suicide for a few months prior.

February 26, 2005

They have arrested somebody in Wichita Kansas who they suspect to be the BTK killer.

February 27, 2005

The man arrested as the BTK Killer is Dennis Rader, a cub scout leader, active in his Lutheran church , married with two children, the municipal codes enforcer supervisor for the city, . Van Orden is suing to have the ten commandments monument from the Texas Supreme Court state grounds . He is a former lawyer, now homeless Vietnam veteran. They note that the U.S. Supreme Court has a display in their marble lobby of Moses holding a marble carving of the ten commandments, but Van Orden rejects the comparison noting that the display also includes other historical law givers such as Hammurabi, Confucius, and Muhammad, as well as Napoleon and Cesar Augustus.

He said he would not have sued if the capitol bldg. paid similar homage to other law givers/historical figures. He’s had his law license suspended several times for issues ranging from taking money for work he didn’t perform …[and other things] he’s almost 60 years old. Gathering of governors from many of the states to try to improve high school education, absent was Arnold and Jeb. Benenson, founder of Amnesty Intl. Died at age 83,

Rosswell New Mexico –they found metal a few decades ago that some insisted was from a UFO, but the govt insists it was from a hot air balloon project they had participated in. It was a secret govt project known as Mogul. Same security as atomic bomb. For surveillance. Jeff Kent—former S.F. Giant player , former team mate of Barry Bonds, says all the hooplah about him and Bonds being enemies is exaggerated, is now with the Dodgers. He was on the Giants when they played the Angels in the world series. IRAQ or Syria captures Saddam Hussein’s half-brother, Sabawi Ibrahim al-Husan.

February 28, 2005

Suicide bomber kills more than 100 and wounds 133 in an attack south of Baghdad. A suicide car bomber blew himself up Monday in a crowd at a police and national guard recruit site south of Baghdad killing at least 106 and wounding 133, police and witnesses said. IT was one of the deadliest insurgent attacks since President Bush declared the war over in May 2003. AP television news footage showed large pools of blood outside the medical clinic, located on a dusty street in Hilla, sixty miles south of Baghdad.

Scorchmarks infused covered the clinic walls and dozens of people helped to put body parts in blankets…soles of shoes and tattered clothes were piled in a corner. A suicide car bomb hit a gathering of people who were applying to work in the security services. The incident led to the death of a 106 people and injured 133 citizens,” Babil province police said in a statement released to reporters. He added that several people were arrested about the blast but did not elaborate. Iraqi security forces have been regularly targeted by insurgents who see them as collaborating with U.S. forces and want to undermine Iraq’s American-backed government.

Dozens of bodies could be seen lying on the ground after the blast and half a dozen ambulances ferried casualties to a nearby hospital, witnesses said.

The huge blast damaged nearby shops and parked cars and sent panicked people fleeing. People were queuing up to get checked medically in order to become policemen. A car came and exploded killing more than 50 people, more than what you expect said ammar mosa a wtiness told EPTN. A second car exploded Monday at a police checkpoint in Musayyib, about 20 miles north of Hilla killing at least 1 policeman and wounding several others, police said on condition of anonymity.

The twin attacks came a day after Iraqi officials announced that Syria had captured and handed over Sadam Hussein’s half-brother, a most wanted leader in the Suni based insurgency, in the latest of a series of arrests which the U.S/Iraq leaders hope will deal a crushing blow to violent opposition forces .

The arrest of Sabawi Ibrahim al-husan ended months of Syrian denials that it was harboring fugitives of the ousted Saddam regime. Iraq authorities said Damascus acted in a gesture of good will. Sabawai al husan who shared a mother with Saddam, was nabbed along with 29 other fugitive members of the former dictators Baath party in Hasakaah, in northeaster Syria, 30 miles from the border, officials said Sunday on condition of anonymity. U.S. military had no comment.

Syria is under intense pressure from the United States, United Nations, France & Israel to drop its support for radical groups in the Middle East, to stop harboring Iraqi fugitives and to remove its troops from Lebanon. A week ago authorities grabbed a key associate and the driver of Jordanian born terror leader Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi (who has not been caught yet), a leader of Al-Quaeda in Iraq, and believed to be the leader of the ongoing bombings, beheadings and attacks on Iraqi and American forces. Iraqi officials said they expect to take al-Zarqawi soon. Iraqis broke the news of al Husan’s capture.

“I hope all the terrorists will be arrested soon and we can live in peace” said Sophia Sood, a 54 year old Baghdad housewife. “Those criminals deserve death for the crimes they committed against the Iraqi people.” Iraqi officials did not specify when al-Husan was captured , only saying he was detained after the Feb 14 assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri in Beirut Lebanon, in a roadside bombing that killed 16 others.

Syria fell under suspicion in the killing because of its military and political domination of the country, where it maintains 15,000 troops. Hariri had quit the premiership over Syria’s continued presence in Lebanon. Captain Ahmed Ismael, an Iraqi intelligence officer said al-Husan was handed to the Iraqis Sunday.

ANOTHER Iraqi official said Syrian security expelled al Husan after he and supporters had been turned back in an earlier attempt to cross the Syrian border into Lebanon and Jordan. Al-Husan was #36 , the six of diamonds, on the list of most wanted terrorists in Iraq, compiled by U.S. Authorities after Saddam was toppled in April, 2003. Eleven of the deck of 55 remain at large.

The U.S. had offered 1 million for Al-Husan’s capture. Iraq’s post-election Shiite Muslim power broker united alliance leader Abdel Aziz al-Hakim told AP that Husan’s arrest signaled troubled times for insurgency. “those criminals are on the run and we will chase the rest of them . We will work on arresting all the criminals, either those inside Iraq or those in other neighboring countries so that they can stand fair trial and be punished for the crimes they have committed against the Iraqi people”he said. AP reporter Salah Masrawi in Cairo contributed to this report.March 1, 2005

New research and bran scan technology shows that some brain does originate in the brain, it’s not imagined. Chronic back pain can even cause brain tissue to shrink if it is prolonged. When people say “pain is all in the head” some people think they mean it’s not real” says Katherine Bushnell.

Researchers at ____________ University …through brain imaging Bushnell has shown that something as simple as being distracted has a real effect in decreasing the intensity of pain signals in the brain. They had patients listen to tones , while so their perception of pain diminished, and brain scans showed the pain did lessen while they listened to the tones. She says this means that having family around constantly asking how one is feeling can actually draw more attention to the pain and enhance it. Emotions can either enhance or decrease pain. Pleasant odors ease the sensation of pain while unpleasant smells made the pain feel worse. Now they are looking for ways to target pathways to the brain to stop some of the pain sensations.